PSP gets new Syphon Filter, SOCOM

Earlier this week, a handful of unannounced Sony products showed up on the Web site of retailer GameStop. Most of those products were unveiled this week at Sony's Gamers' Day press event in San Diego, starting with a trio of new PlayStation Portable games.

First off is SOCOM: Tactical Strike, the third handheld game in the series and the first from Vancouver-based studio Slant Six (the same team handling SOCOM: Confrontation on the PlayStation 3). The game represents a departure for the series, as players will no longer use the analog stick to directly control their team of soldiers. Instead, they will use a movement cursor to order troops around the game's environments, which the designers are using to try and emphasize more complex tactical maneuvers than were possible previously.

Also returning to the PSP is the sci-fi action adventure series Syphon Filter, with series protagonist Gabe Logan returning to take on the terrorists once more in Syphon Filter: Logan's Shadow. Featuring a story by Atticus Kodiak author Greg Rucka and a soundtrack from 300 composer Azam Ali, Logan's Shadow is expected to see release this September.

Those weren't the only announcements related to the handheld hardware, as SCEA also confirmed that it's arcade-style sequel Pursuit Force: Extreme Justice would be coming to the US later this year. Finally, in a presentation to the assembled media, SCEA president Jack Tretton mentioned the PSP's long-awaited downloadable content service and said the company hoped to have it up and running by the fall. Originally, the service was set to launch in March 2006, but it was pushed back for more than a year for unspecified reasons.

For more on the SCEA Gamers' Day, check out GameSpot's comprehensive coverage of the event.